Method of dehydrating milk and milk compositions.



JOSEPH MOSES WARD KITCHEN, 0F. EAST on'enen, NEW JERSEY.

METHOD OF DEHYDRATING MILK AND MILK COMPOSITIONS. in

No Drawing.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, JOSEPH Mosns -WARD KITCHEN, a citizen of the United States, resid'ng in the city of East Orange, county of Essex, Stateof New Jersey, have invented Improvements in Methods of Dehydrating Milk and Milk Compositions, of which the following is a specification.

The object of the present invention is to secure the dehydration of milk in a uniform manner, and With the least injury to its dimilk; and particularly, from skim milk and.

cereals such as ma1ze, producing a Well balancedfood nutrltively that Will be a very low cost food, and yet be hygenically, as Well as in physical character, a desirable food composition. w

If corn meal and a cons derable amount of skim milk are admixed, and then dehydrated through the application of high heat, a hard horn-like masssis produced that is difficult to thoroughly dry,'pulverize after drying, and which is somewhat difficult of digestion. Tocompound'a ration of corn meal and skim milk that is nutritively well balanced, approximately three parts byweight of skim milk and one pound of corn meal should be used; and to completely dehvd'rate this mixture, andsecure a'desirable phvsical character in the composition, the sk m milk should only. be added gradually to the meal and dehydrated at a moderate heat, so that the meal granules are not dissolvedand diffused in' the milk, I find that a desirable method to adopt in. carrying out this principle,-is to continually but slightly moisten the meal-With the milk, and to dry at low temperaturesmost of the milk on the externalsurfaces of the meal by theaid of a substantially immediate. continuous and extended contact with the'milk of freshvolumes of drying air in such manner that a dried layer of milk of greater or less thick- Specification of Letters Patent. a P t t d F b, 9, 1915, 2 Application filed January 24, 1914. Serial No. 814,188. I V

ness is formed on the outside of the meal' granules. This is preferable to allowing the milk to become much absorbed into the meal granules. Such a composition is'of desin able physical character and digestibility: in use, 1t producing a more light and porous food-mass capable of more immediate and quick penetration by the d gestive juices.

This procedure can be successfully performed in various Ways; and 7 dried food compositions having various proportions of milk may be produced. Milk by itself can.

be dried into granular formin this manner. As an example of carrying out the process, may be cited the method of repeatedly sifting granules of repeatedly moistened meal through a heated atmosphere, using an elevating device for continually raising to a high level, the meal being treated; and employing other devices for separating and spacing the moistened granules as they are precipitated through the heated atmosphere. The drying heated air rising in vertical counter-current to the falling granules, im-

parts its highest heat to the granules at the lowest level, and gradually and progressively looses its heat to the falling granules at progressively higher levels. Another plan is to have a steam jacketed trough for holding the meal.- The trough is provided with a revolving set oflifting paddles peripherally attached to a shaft, the revolution of wh ch continually lifts the moistened meal in such manner as to secure its precipitation back into the steam heated trough; the precipitated granules passing through and losing moisture to the air heated by the heated contents of the trough. The milk is gradually but continually being added to the meal in moderate amounts; and by mechanical admixture, is distributed throughout the meal-mass, slightly moistening the surfaces of the meal granules in a substantially con tinuo'us manner, While the drying process is continually being carried on through dill-usion into the atmosphereof the warmed ing the mill.

I do not confine myself to. any special method of dehydration of milk. 1t willbe obvious that a granular product of dried I milk may-be produced in this manner by starting the process with fine sized nuclei of meal, ury sugar, or other"substance.

, It is obvious scribed can be applied to the drying of other nutrient fluids besides milk; and that nuclear material on nutrient fluids can be dried by my 1 process, may include a variety of such materials;

and that the dehydration of such fluids or compositions,

can be efl'ected without the resulting damage to digestive character that may follow the high heating of a food substance. The same objection oi applying high heat-in dehydrating milk, also more or less applies to the dehydration of other animal, and and other constituents. But the process pertains in particular to skim milk, because of the immense amounts of that material that are either wasted, or inadequately utilized for human food.

Subject matter is herein disclosed which is not herein claimed, but which is claimed in both of two copending applications of apgressively increasing thickness,

' drying the milk on plicant,'viz' that which especially relates to compositions of skim milk and maize, and

other cereals rich in vegetable fats. in Sr.v

No. 740,963, filed January 9, 191 l; and that which-particularly relates to milk and cocoa compositions, in Sr. 18, 1914.

What I claim as new is: 1.; The method herein consists in, slowly moistening a cereal granule with milk while mechanically stirringthe milk and cereal granules and continually drying the milk on the granules by exposure to dry volumes of air until, a desired amount of 'milk is dried on the granules.

2. The method herein described, which adding more drying it on-the dried coating. granules and their coatings being completely dried,

4. The method herein consists in, adding to a cereal rich in vegethat the method herein dej which the milk or other' vegetable fluids containing protein. milk having been No. 872,877, filed Nov.

described, which dried milk in pro described. which table fat, skim milk in desired definite proportions suited to the composing of gradually performed, and such admixed material being dried by continual aeration with drying air. f

'5. The method herein described, which consists in, gradually admixing skim milk with and continually drying the skim milk on the granulesiof a comminuted cereal in an atmosphere of a 1 the milk being admixed with, the granules and-being continually dried upon the surface of the granules of the comminuted cereals progressively as the milk is added "to and admixed with the granules.

6. As a new food product, a dry, combined composition of dehydrated skim milk said skim and pulverized cereal granules,

dehydrated by continually applying the milk to and drying the milk in a progressively thickening coat to said granules during the. process of evaporation of the moisture of the milk from the surfaces of the granulesat a temperature sufficiently low to prevent the dissolving of the granules, little or none of the milk having been absorbed into the substance of the interior of the granules.

7. As a new food product, maize granules coated with dried skim milk, said granules having a form substantially such as they had before the milk coating was applied.

8. As a new food product, a granule of comminuted cereal having a coating composed of successively applied films of fluid milk dried onto said granule.

9. As a new food product, a composition of cereal granules coated with dried skim milk, said coating being composed of successively applied and dried coats of skim milk.

10. As a new food product, a granule of nutrient material having a coating comprised of successively applied films of milk dried thereon.

11. As a new food product, adried nutrient granule, said granule being composed ofa nutrient nucleus and successively applied and dried coats of anutrient fluid composed of at least a cons derable amount a de-- .sirably balanced ration, such addition being temperature, below 200 of protein constituent, said drying having been effected at a temperature below the boiling point of water and the digestive character of said dried coats having been eonserved by said temperature in said drymg.

JOSEPH MOSES WARD KITCHEN;

Witnesses:

GEO. L. W'nnsnocrr, FLORENCE JAcKsoN. 

